1. The King of Kong

Who knew that a Donkey Kong championship could yield so much angst and hilarity? This unexpectedly inspiring tale follows Steve Wiebe, a Seattle science teacher, in his attempt to dethrone Billy Mitchell, the trash-talking, long-time Donkey Kong champ. Fiercer than the Yanks-Sox rivalry and as gut-wrenching as Rocky, this joystickers' delight arrives on DVD with Kong-conquering tutorials, interviews with Donkeyverse stars, and an Easter egg that will shock the arcade gaming world's conspiracy nuts.

Illustration: Sean McCabe

2. Thepage.time.com

Romney's surging! Obama's going negative! McCain's tanking! In the heat of the political silly season, it's hard to keep pace with the horse race. Mark Halperin does it for you with his daily vlog, The PageCast. Straight from the campaign trail, the former ABC News political director stares into the camera to deliver a 60- to 90-second video bullet-pointing the day's hot issues.

3. Born in the Bronx: A Visual Record of the Early Days of Hip Hop

In this beautifully designed book, writer Johan Kugelberg enrolls in the old school with hundreds of photos, show flyers, record covers, and lyric sheets documenting hip hop's infancy. Shots of early pioneers like Afrika Bambaataa and Grandmaster Flash show how kids with little more than cheap mics and turntables ignited a cultural revolution.

4. Nada Surf: lucky

Signed during the post-Weezer mid-'90s, these power-poppers averted the dustbin of one-hit wonderdom (their novelty single "Popular," about high school superficiality, was in constant rotation on MTV) by reinventing themselves on their indie releases. The result: lush, orchestrated alt-pop.

5. Diary of the Dead

George A. Romero's landmark low-budget shockers Night of the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead defined the zombie movie genre. Shot verité style in HD, the director's latest is a first-person account of the undead apocalypse made for the YouTube generation. Raw and savagely inventive, it's as dripping with sociopolitical satire and black comedy as it is with human viscera.

Photo: Steve Wilkie/The Weinstein Company

6. Sony PFR-V1 Headphones

Yes, they look more like a steampunk torture device than headphones. But putting on a pair of V1s is pure audio bliss. Using "extended bass reflex duct effect," the bulbous cans simulate the effect of listening to high-end speakers. The result? Sparkling highs, thumping lows, and a lot of puzzled looks when you wear them out in public.

7. Super Smash Bros. Brawl

Did your Rock Band supergroup kick you out? Vent your anger with a good-natured Brawl. Nintendo's family-friendly battle royale takes the Wii by storm in February, featuring pugilists like Sonic the Hedgehog, Wario, and Metal Gear's Solid Snake. The object: Smash your opponents to pieces by any means necessary. The Wii's Wi-Fi connection lets you put the hurt on Mario's hairy keister with palookas from around the world.

8. Torchwood Season One

OK, the first half of the premiere season of Torchwood — the Doctor Who spin-off that follows immortal Captain Jack Harkness and his band of alien-fighters — wasn't exactly stellar television. Still: Bite the bullet and power through the season on DVD. Because even if you don't like the better second half, you'll need to catch up for season two. That's when James Marsters (Buffy) will guest star as Captain Jack's love interest.

9. ShareMiner.com

Picking the perfect songs for that über-sexy Valentine's Day mix is hard enough. But scouring all the Megauploads in the universe to find that obscure Bright Eyes cover is just plain tedious. ShareMiner lets you scan two, three, four, or almost all of them at once. Search your soul before you download, though — you could be breaking the law.

10. Bacon of the Month

Nothing says "love" more than a cured pork product. This Valentine's Day, surprise your carnivorous sweetie with a $150 year's supply of schmancy bacon, delivered to their door by The Grateful Palate. And if chocolate also makes your honey squeal with delight, try Mo's Bacon Bar from Vosges — there's applewood-smoked pig strips in every bite.

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